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Ebay Rumored to be Buying Skype

Posted by CmdrTaco on from the now-thats-a-really-strange-marriage dept.

JDStone writes "Rumor has it that trusted sources from The Wall Street Journal say Ebay is interested in buying Skype. Later after the announcment, Ebay Inc. shares fell 4.3 percent."

2 of 199 comments (clear)

  1. Please, no American buyers! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Interesting

    One of the nice things about Skype is the strong encryption. The American government is considering legislation to require backdoors in internet telephony. I've lost the link but I saw an interview with the CEO of Skype, asking how they would respond...the CEO simply said that as a company in Luxembourg, he was perfectly free to ignore American legislation, and intended to do so. EBay wouldn't have the same freedom.

  2. Re:Why? by nametaken · · Score: 4, Interesting


    Its not uncommon for a company with cash in the bank to buy up unrelated companies to diversify its holdings. Its much like an individual buying a mutual fund, you don't put all your eggs in one basket. Companies like Microsoft do this all the time. They've bought all kinds of seemingly unrelated companies.

    Additionally, it could provide a near-turnkey solution for better buyer/seller communication, which could be cool.

    From a number of persepectives, it could happen. It just doesn't look like the market approves right now.